Research shows that after using medical marijuana for three months, medical marijuana patients improves the quality of life, and pain, anxiety, as well as depression are alleviated

Author： unigreensz.com Time：2023-10-10 10:54:34 Read：391

 A new study of more than 2,300 people shows that patients with chronic health problems experienced significant improvements in their overall quality of life and less fatigue within the first three months of using medical marijuana. The study found that "these outcomes also improved within 3 months in patients experiencing anxiety, depression, or chronic pain."

 The report, published this week in the journal PLoS ONE, analyzed the response of Australian patients eligible for the QUEST Initiative, which researchers describe as "a review of any new prescriptions for medicinal cannabis between November 2020 and December 2021." A large prospective multicenter study of patients with chronic disease.”  "The age range of participants was 18 to 97 years old (average 51 years old), and 62.8% were female.

 The most common symptoms among participants were chronic pain (69%), insomnia (23%), anxiety (22%), and anxiety/depression (11%), with half of patients reporting more than one symptom.

 "We observed statistically significant, clinically meaningful improvements in overall [health-related quality of life] and fatigue in patients with chronic medical conditions within the first 3 months of taking prescribed medical cannabis."

 Before starting cannabis treatment, participants completed baseline surveys regarding health-related quality of life (HRQL), pain, sleep, fatigue, anxiety, and depression. They received follow-up surveys two weeks after treatment, and then once a month for three months. People were not eligible to participate in the study if they had used prescription medical marijuana within the past four weeks.

 All participants took Little Green Pharma medical cannabis oil, which contains THC and CBD dissolved in medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil, available in four formulations: 1:20 THC to CBD ratio, 1:20 THC to CBD ratio is 1:20, balanced is a 10:10 ratio, has a THC content of 20:5, and contains only CBD (ratios are listed in milligrams of THC and CBD per milliliter of oil).

 Participants who completed three months of treatment reported improvements in overall health-related quality of life compared to their pre-treatment baseline. Patients who completed only the first follow-up assessment showed less improvement than those who continued.

 Participants also improved on pain measures overall, although patients with a chronic pain diagnosis showed greater improvement than those who did not receive pain treatment.

 "Anxiety, depression and pain also improved over time, particularly for those with corresponding health conditions."

 The study found that respondents' sleep patterns did not improve. "Analysis of 534 participants with a diagnosis of insomnia ... found no statistically significant or clinically meaningful changes in mean sleep T-scores over time that were consistent with those of patients without insomnia," the report said. no difference."

 However, fatigue did decrease, "suggesting clinically meaningful improvement."

 In depression, the authors wrote, "While scores shifted from the moderate to mild severity range, the difference did not reach the 5-point threshold for clinically meaningful improvement." But as with the other categories, those diagnosed with Improvements were more pronounced in people with certain medical conditions. The study looked at 288 participants with "depressive health conditions (i.e., mixed depressive and anxiety disorders, recurrent depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder)," with respondents transitioning from major depressive disorder to For moderate depression, a difference of more than 5 points indicates "clinically significant" improvement.  "

 Anxiety scores showed similar results, showing a significant trend toward improvement over time but failing to achieve "clinically meaningful improvement" except for the 748 participants diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. level. The study found that "on average, scores decreased from moderate/severe to mild anxiety."

 Over the course of three months, 127 participants officially dropped out of the study, citing various reasons. These included treatment not working (52 people), changing treatment (31 people), adverse side effects (30 people) and cannabis products being too expensive (14 people). But most people report at least some degree of relief.

 "Within the first three months of medicinal cannabis treatment, participants reported improvements in health-related quality of life, fatigue, and health conditions related to anxiety, depression, and pain," the seven-person research team said in a press release express.

 Although the study results were generally positive, the authors acknowledged that at least some of the reported improvements may be the result of a placebo effect.

 "Our findings should be interpreted in the context of single-arm studies without a control group. Systematic reviews of studies on cannabis and HRQL show smaller effects in [randomized controlled trials] and larger effects without a control group," ” the study said.  "It is possible that the observed improvements are partly attributable to the placebo effect, with widespread public discussion (media and social media) about the benefits of medicinal cannabis and its interaction with the endocannabinoid system increasing patient expectations."

 Going forward, the study "will continue to follow patients for 12 months to determine whether improvements [in patient-reported outcomes] are maintained long-term," the report said.  "In addition, further subgroup analyzes will be performed to determine whether patients with specific conditions have better outcomes than others when using validated condition-specific questionnaires."

 Medical cannabis is tightly regulated across Australia, although reforms introduced in 2016 allowed patients whose health conditions failed to respond to traditional treatments to use it.

 In February this year, the Australian government also repurposed psilocybin and MDMA for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and treatment-resistant depression.

 The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said in a notice at the time that "this decision recognizes the current lack of options for patients with certain treatment-resistant mental illnesses," noting that the change meant "psilocybin and MDMA can be used to treat psychiatric disorders." "Controlled Healthcare Environment" starting July 1.

 As in the United States, Australian laws can vary significantly depending on the local jurisdiction. Lawmakers in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Legislative Assembly last year approved a bill to decriminalize low-level possession of illegal drugs - including psilocybin, heroin and cocaine - in the federal territory, which includes the nation's capital Canberra.

 The ACT previously decriminalized cannabis in the early 1990s, and its parliament approved a non-commercial cannabis legalization bill that comes into effect in 2020, allowing adults aged 18 and over to possess and grow cannabis for personal use.